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Tuesday, July 24, 2012

How I Got Stung by a BB Cream...

One of the latest makeup/skincare trend items is the BB cream — otherwise known as the blemish balm or beauty balm depending on the product formula. This product first became popular in Japan and began appearing last year in the U.S. Now quite a few of the major (and niche) makeup and skincare brands in North America have introduced their own BB creams, including Jane Iredale Glow Time Full Coverage Mineral BB Cream.

So, what is a BB cream? A BB cream is intended to be a hybrid product offering the benefits of your moisturizer, spot treatment, sunscreen, concealer, and foundation. I liken it to a tinted moisturizer on steroids. Every product is touting specific features, so it's a good idea to read the packaging first to ensure the product is right for your needs.

I've personally watched this trend from a distance since I was a bit skeptical of its hype. Call me crazy, but I've had a hard time believing that one product can do it all. However, I finally was convinced to try a BB cream. And here's my take.

I experimented with Jane Iredale Glow Time Full Coverage Mineral BB Cream several weeks ago. I've used her powder mineral foundations in the past and I've been impressed by the quality of her products. According to the company, Jane's BB cream "...covers blemishes, minimizes pores, disguises wrinkles, and smoothes and
brightens skin. Its mineral-based formula nourishes your complexion and
helps protect skin from UV and free radical damage."

After carefully swatching several shades, I chose #B5 (recommended for light to medium complexions). There are two lighter shades; however, they both seemed extremely pink in hue and I wanted something with more of a yellow base. B5 matched fairly well to my light, yet neutral complexion. I applied 4-5 dots on my face and blended with my fingertips. The product blended well and offered extremely full coverage. Honestly...it was much heavier in coverage than I typically prefer. I tried to sheer it out with a sponge, but then the product started to get streaky. I stopped and reapplied to get the evenness effect once again.

Once on the skin it felt a tad heavy like a really dense sunscreen. I thought it might get lighter over time, but it felt this same way until I took off the BB cream many hours later. It also felt very slick to the touch due to its multiple silicone-based ingredients (Dimethicone, Stearoxymethicone/Dimethicone Copolymer, etc).

My overall opinion...I felt like I was wearing a mask. This product seemed to hide my face instead of enhancing my own natural beauty. With several hours of wear, my complexion became quite oily which is unusual for my normal to dry skin. Let's just say that I couldn't wait to take it all off!

While this is just one person's experience with one BB cream product, I'm pretty sure that I won't be rushing to try another in the very near future.

Purchase info: Jane Iredale Glow Time Full Coverage Mineral BB Cream is available at select skincare boutiques, day spas, and online. It retails for $48.00 and comes in six shades.

4 comments:

Interesting review, I had quite a different response to it. I used the B1 which is indeed quite pale but matched my skin tone exactly. I used it over JI primer and honestly can say that my skin glowed. It was not shinny or oily at all, and I have very oily skin. I normally wear powder but felt it would mask the glow this product gave my skin. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants a flawless look without the heavy product application. A dot literally goes a LONG way with this product. I dot the forehead, each check the nose and chin, spread with fingers and that's it. LOVE this more than any other foundation I have tried.

a very late reply but originally bb cream became popular from south koreand then spread everywhere else. the idea of bb cream originated from germany, not japan. it was south korea that made it more popular. i believe that hanskin was the first commercial bb cream to hit the market.